Well, if there is going to be one, sadly another nail was put in the metaphorical coffins labelled potential for Cambrian Coast Line and potential for Cambrian Line in tonight's stream. Last month Matt said TSW can't do request stops (which I think also means no potential for Conwy Valley Line and Heart of Wales Line) and tonight he said TSW can't handle ETCS (something TSW will have to solve at some point seeing as ETCS (of which the Cambrian Coast Line and Cambrian Line were the UK guinea pigs for) is being rolled out across the UK). I believe ETCS is either being rolled out or soon to be rolled out on the South Wales mainline. Which could just leave North Wales Coast at which point, yes it's a Welsh route but, do we really need another relatively high speed line? At going rate, only chance of a Welsh route in TSW will be a narrow gauge railway route but, I think that would most probably fail the L.A.M.P. O.I.L. test from what I understand of the explanation last month and this month in the road maps.
Guessing it would take some work to implement request stops that they ain’t got round to doing, pretty sure rivet noticed that when Arosa released the odd year ago. Guess they could do the compromise of a varied stopping pattern like Arosa to mimic request stops, not sure how liked that is by people though.
Nothing at the moment but It will likely happen at some point as Wales is highly requested. So many people on the forum want to see North Wales Coastal Route myself included.
Had a chuckle this morning whilst setting up a Class 66 on Cathcart Circle because next to the AWS isolater button was an isolater button for ETCS.
I'd love a Welsh route but I think also going against some scenic routes in the UK is the lack of services meaning a very limited amount of ai.
A Welsh route doesn't have to be modern with ETCS, of course. I do hope we see one soon, there are some very interesting railways in Wales.
Sounds to me like classic "Can't do" attitude from DTG. Simple answer if TSW can't do request stops is... don't make them by request. Just have the train calling at all stations as if it was market day or something, but put the dwell time as something like 15 or 20 seconds. There are many routes around the UK where trains stop by request and not just in the remoter parts of Scotland or Wales either. Fairly certain some stops in East Anglia on rural lines are request only, or the Barnstaple Line in Devon. Dilton Marsh on the Westbury to Salisbury section used to be request only. As regards ECTS, well set it back a few years. And once again DTG are admitting defeat when AFAIR SimRail are getting up and running with that system. TSW is rapidly closing off so many avenues, hard to see what will be left for them to do before long. Don't want to do steam. Don't want to do US Heavy freight. Don't want to do NYC Subway. Don't want to do rural lines with request stops. What will be the next "we can't do that", to join the list? I would love to see the Cambrian Coast Line from Machynlleth to Pwllheli in TSW but guess it doesn't feel snug and cuddly to the people in charge like another one handled EMU 30 mile English commuter route...
If they ever did a NWC route, I would much prefer it to be set in late 70's/early mid 80's (hello Just Trains ! hint hint) as you have the Freightliners to Holyhead, plenty of sidings and sheds, coal runs too, even some fast/slow lines - travelling along that route now is boring and I won't mention how bloody awful those 197's are to travel on, oh! I just did
That's why I had kind of hoped JT would take this on as their next project, but it looks from the teaser picture and speculation they are going deeper into the North West of England.
I'd think the language barrier would be the biggest obstacle supporting Wales. Much easier to stick with English and German speaking countries. /s
I'd have thought the German stuff would be harder than Welsh stuff.. then again, I live in North Wales so I can speak Welsh easily, without even thinking sometimes - so obviously I'd say that. I suppose we'll just have to wait and hope that we do get a Welsh route eventually - I'm just gonna echo most people; NWCL please!
I don’t think language is much of barrier in TSW , definitely not the level to exclude particular routes/countries, I’m not sure how you came to that conclusion what makes German so special besides if it was then the only safe one would be English as DTG’s an English company and theirs no guarantee any employee would speak anything other than English (which is not the case and it wouldn’t matter anyhows) Edit: wales is also probably the safest country for converting words back to English as they are often written side by side, notably for station names. And if not 100%, then a very high near that number of Welsh people also speak English perfectly well.
Anecdotally, when I lived in South Wales for just under 9 years - despite the bilingual clamour and “Welsh first” on signs and announcements - I actually heard Welsh spoken conversationally just twice, in all that time. You would stand on Cardiff Central station waiting for the train home off early turn and when the announcement were broadcast in Welsh first pretty much everyone just look puzzled or glanced at each other with a quizzical look on their faces.
I personally think the German language looks and sounds a LOT harder than the Welsh language ever has, but I am Welsh.. so obviously I would think that. Anyways, I can speak English and Welsh, so if DTG need any help with translation - I'm here and happy to help!
My sister lives in South Wales and has done for over 20 years. She is the only person I have ever heard speak Welsh, and she is English! Her children are at a Welsh school though.
Don't know if it's still the same, but it used to be very different in North Wales! I visited frequently in the 80s and 90s, and I'd often hear people in shops switch to Welsh as soon as they heard my English voice. Still love the place though
Not so much like that any more, at least I don't hear that, not in public anyway... In school it happens a lot though, I'll be talking to my mates in English and some of the Welsh girls will often talk about me behind my back, (they don't seem to like me for some reason) and they just assume I don't understand them! I usually turn to them and tell them (in Welsh) that "I do understand Welsh." Always gives me a good laugh, seeing their shocked faces.. they never seem to remember that I do understand and can speak Welsh, as they continue to do it.
I worked with a guy years ago who was from North Wales, fluent in Welsh but had an English accent. He related the tale how he was on a bus somewhere in North Wales with his girlfriend. Couple of oafs behind started making disparaging comments about her in Welsh and were rather taken aback when the guy turned round and told them to “eff off”, in Welsh!
On my first visit to Wales i actually heard someone speaking Welsh on the train back to London from Cardiff, I am sure that there are still substantial numbers of Welsh speakers even in south Wales.
Hahaha, I like that story! If I was to tell the girls in my school to "eff off" I think I'd get murdered by all the teachers that are obsessed with them for some reason.. no matter what they had said about me. I honestly couldn't care less what they say about me though - unless they say they like me; the feeling's mutual.
I would love a Welsh route definitely over due , personally either a Swansea to Cardiff route where you could maybe have GWR Iets on it but mainly would like a route that would feature the 175s on it maybe Swansea to Pembroke
A few observations as an exiled Welshman. Request Stops. I've travelled on the Pembroke branch four times in the past six weeks, about half the stations are request stops. The guard did walk through asking if there were passengers intending to get off at them, and on each occasion we stopped at all stations. So I'm not sure not having request stops would be a deal breaker. Language. Welsh is the traditional language of Wales. That more people speak English is due to immigration, largely by the English, initially to work in the coal and steel industries and latterly because it's a nice place to retire to. In addition the UK Government introduced the Welsh Not where schoolchildren received corporal punishment for speaking Welsh in school. Today around a third of the population speak Welsh, primarily in North and Mid Wales and in Carmarthenshire and Ceridigion. You're not going to hear it much in Cardiff or South Wales. It's right it comes first, I'm sure English people would be upset if a language other than English was spoken first on English trains. Routes. Plenty of gems amongst Welsh routes, some well known, others less so. I would love to see West Wales in the Eighties, but I guess that's pretty niche. Carmarthen to Swansea is a wonderful mix of coastal, riverside and urban landscapes, the Gwendraeth Valley would offer shunter hauled coal trains, and I'd love to take a 3300 tonne iron ore train from Port Talbot to Llanwern with a pair of 56's or a trio of 37's at the helm.
The Valley Lines would be great - three branches and the shunting fans would have a wonderful time - was born there 80 years ago and left more than 60 years ago and still remember the clinking of wagons down in the valley
Matt wasn't saying TSW won't ever have request stops, ETCS, or better steam physics. He said that it doesn't currently have these features, which is nothing more than an indisputably correct factual statement about TSWs current feature set. There's nothing in there from which you could extrapolate anything about TSWs future feature set.
We will get a Welsh route eventually. Everybody wants to see a class 185 spontaneously combust in the middle of nowhere, in the heavy rain, surrounded by hills and sheep. You're all imagining the majestic scene in your head now, aren't you?
Nah, the single 153 conking out on the Central Wales line. Flushing the toilet water into the cooling system (for the uninitiated that is a feature) fails to restart the engine. Cue scenario three hours sat doing nothing, waiting for an assisting unit from Shrewsbury or Swansea to arrive and drag you out.
I certainly hope so, there’s plenty of TSC Welsh routes that could find there way on TSW. If I was to pick one it would be Shrewsbury to Bristol & Swansea.
